Baked Pita Bread

For the last day of BM# 15, I have a baked flat bread with yeast. Ever since I saw this recipe on Vardini’s blog, I wanted to make it. Recipe is from Fresh Loaf site and I used one of the variations suggested in the comments section – I used half all-purpose flour and half spelt flour to make it a little healthier. 

The resulting pitas were soft and tasted great. It was fun seeing the pitas puff up in the oven, the key is to roll them evenly and keep the thickness on slightly thick side. Most of my pitas puffed up pretty good and had a pocket when we cut into them. I made some falafel, a simple tomato - green onion salad and tahini-yogurt dip to fill and flavor our pita pockets. 

Ingredients: 

All-purpose flour – 1½ cups 

Spelt flour – 1½ cups 

Salt – 1½ tsp 

Sugar – 1tbsp 

Instant Yeast – 2¼ tsp (or one envelope) 

Water (@ room temperature) – 1¼ cups 

Olive Oil – 2tbsp 

 

Method: 

• Combine the flours, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add water slowly to the flour and form into smooth and pliable dough. Add oil and knead it into the dough.
• Spray a large bowl with cooking spray and transfer the dough; cover with plastic wrap or kitchen towel and set aside at room temperature for about 1½ hrs or until the dough doubles in size. 
• Punch the dough down and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a smooth ball; cover and set aside for 20 minutes.
• In the meantime, place a baking stone (or an overturned baking sheet) in the oven and preheat to 425°F. 
• Roll each ball into disks sprinkling flour as needed. Stack the rolled disks and keep them covered to avoid drying out. 
• Carefully place the disks on the hot baking stone (I was able to fit 2 pitas at a time on my round baking sheet) and bake for 3-4 minutes or until they puff up and look opaque. 
• Remove and stack them covered in a clean kitchen towel. Enjoy with your favorite fillings and dips.

 

Let's check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked up for the Last day of BM# 15. Thanks to Valli for being a gracious host and organizing yet another successful Marathon.

I'll be back soon with the announcement for Dish It Out.